Radical imam who helped to prompt the government’s extremism crackdown has been ‘working with the Met and speaking to primary school children in his mosque’

A thorough imam who helped prompt the authorities’s extremism crackdown is reportedly silent active in his native mosque the put he ‘speaks to primary school children’. 

Shakeel Begg turned into as soon as chanced on to be an ‘extremist preacher’ by a High Court docket desire in 2016. It turned into as soon as furthermore chanced on that his role as an imam set him in a discipline to ‘plant the seed of Islamic extremism in a young mind’. 

But despite the ruling, Begg is silent the head imam of the Lewisham Islamic Centre (LIC) in south-east London, The Times has reported. 

The mosque is commonly visited by schoolchildren from the native put and has links with the native council. 

According to Lewisham Islamic Centre’s Facebook page, the mosque has welcomed pupils from nearby schools on in any case six occasions in 2022 and 2023. 

The imam has been pictured having discussions with the schoolchildren, some of whom are primary-school age. 

The mosque’s school turned into as soon as itself despatched a whole bunch of thousands of kilos in authorities grants prior to it closed in 2019.  

Begg has furthermore continued to work with the Met Police and in September, Trevor Lawry, the native borough commander visited the mosque for an interfaith forum. 

Furthermore the power supported Begg’s libel case against the BBC in 2016 saying he had supported Forestall – the authorities’s counter-extremism programme.

Michael Gove, the communities minister, acknowledged in the Home of Commons the outdated day that Begg’s case turned into as soon as brought to the consideration of the authorities and turned into as soon as a factor that pushed them to redefine extremism. 

Begg turned into as soon as furthermore criticised by the Campaign Against Antisemitism in November in gentle of comments he made about the Hamas terrorist assault in Israel. 

He told his followers on the Friday after the assault: ‘Grant victory to the of us of Palestine, the of us of Gaza, enhance them over their enemy, your enemy. Punish the oppressors [Israel]… fracture them and run them apart.’

He added that the West and Israel were ‘smearing’ Muslims by saying that they had killed ‘innocent children’ in Israel.

‘We all know that is a lie,’ he told worshippers. He went on to slam pro-Israeli celebrities, naming Justin Bieber, Kylie Jenner and Floyd Mayweather, as ‘sick’ of us.

Begg’s case turned into as soon as brought to the High Court docket in 2016 after he sued the BBC for libel when they labelled him extremist.

Nonetheless Lord Justice Haddon-Cave dismissed this, saying that Begg had promoted spiritual violence ‘by telling Muslims that violence in enhance of Islam would represent a man’s finest deed’.

Begg then again has previously acknowledged that the statements referred to by the desire were interpreted in a distinct system to how he intended them and he apologised for the confusion. 

He added that he condemns terrorism and extremism and did no longer desire to support violence.

A spokeswoman for Lewisham council acknowledged: ‘We work with organisations which interact with the many replacement groups within our community, and faith organisations of all kinds are a if truth be told crucial fragment of that. 

‘There are a essential kind of Muslims in Lewisham and the Lewisham Islamic Centre as a body helps our efforts to increase and sustain community brotherly love.’

A spokesperson for The Met denied that Mr Begg had an advisory role with the power and instead attended a faith breakfast with officers. 

They acknowledged these kinds of occasions are serious for ‘engagement work’ and that the motive of the faith breakfast turned into as soon as to discuss the ‘stop and search charter’. 

MailOnline has contacted Lewisham Islamic Centre for commentary. 

The Met Police and Lewisham Council find furthermore been approached for further commentary.